About 50,000 people with autism in the US turn 18 every year.
Life beyond the high school years is uncharted territory for them and it’s becoming a crisis.
For the first two years after high school, more than half of young adults with autism spectrum disorder or ASD were unemployed and weren’t attending college or vocational training. Six years after high school, only a third had attended college and barely half ever held a paid job.
The years after high school are critical for building the structure for the rest of our lives, but these young adults don’t get that chance. There are very few options for them and most resources are created by small groups of families.
We spend most of our lives in adulthood. When each person with ASD doesn’t achieve independence, it costs society millions and the emotional pain is priceless. America needs to focus on job and independent living opportunities for those on the spectrum.
Claudia
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